


We’re Going To Be Friends

by Simana



Series: Fairy Friendship Week [1]
Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Fairy Friendship Week, Friendship, New Friends, Oracion Seis - Freeform, tower of heaven
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:53:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27574784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Simana/pseuds/Simana
Summary: Erik finds a new friend in the Tower of Heaven. Written for Fairy Friendship Week. Day 1: We’re Going To Be Friends.
Relationships: Cobra | Erik & Cubellios | Kinana
Series: Fairy Friendship Week [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2015600
Comments: 1
Kudos: 7
Collections: Fairy Friendship Week 2020





	We’re Going To Be Friends

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you guys enjoy! Please leave a comment if you do, they make me very happy!

Erik stirred from sleep, blearily opening his tired eyes. It was cold, despite the rags and old straw he’d managed to scavenge to cover himself. Most of the other occupants of his cell were also pulling themselves up, fearing the wrath of the cultists if they were late for work. A few yet lay motionless; Erik couldn’t hear any sign of life from them. 

_Great_ , he thought bitterly. _Extra work for the rest of us._

The adults were all gathering around the door, eyes blank and cheeks hollow. Erik and the other children stayed back against the wall. They knew better than to try and join the dawn feeding scrum; Erik still sported the bruises from last time. Right on cue, a hatchway in the door clanged open, and a couple handfuls of bread crusts, cheese rinds and dry jerky were thrown in. The adults swarmed around the pile, fighting amongst themselves to grab a piece of food, before retreating to the side to eat. Erik watched closely, but there wasn’t a single opening. He’d be going hungry today then. 

Just then, a crust of bread dropped into his lap. Startled, Erik looked up. A chubby boy with ginger hair was smiling down at him. 

“Eat up,” he said, and moved around the cell, handing out food to all the children, and any adult too weak to fight for their own. He then sat back down next to a black-haired boy about Erik’s age. 

_That’s right, those two are new,_ Erik thought. _He’ll learn quickly enough that you can’t afford to give food away here._

That didn’t stop the feeling of gratitude as Erik scoffed down the crust. He’d almost finished when he heard a quiet squeaking from down to his left. Swallowing his mouthful, Erik crouched down and noticed a little hollow in the wall. Another hiss-like squeak came from within it. Cautiously he poked a finger inside. A tiny purple snake flew out and clamped its jaws down on the boy’s finger. With a shriek Erik jumped back, attracting odd looks from those close by, and the little snake retreated back inside. 

Heart still pumping, Erik sucked his bleeding finger, and cautiously peered into the hole. The little snake stared back at him, eyes glittering. 

“It’s ok,” Erik said softly. “I’m sorry I scared you.” 

The snake flicked its tongue at him. It looked thin. Erik looked down at the last bite of bread in his hand. With a sigh, he placed it at the hole’s entrance. 

“I don’t know if snakes eat bread, but it’s all I have,” he said. “Go on, you can have it.”

Slowly, the little snake crept forward, and flicked its tongue over the bread. With a quick strike, it grabbed the crust and retreated, swallowing it in one gulp. 

“Woah, you’re as hungry as I am,” Erik exclaimed. Gingerly he reached his hand out again. The snake watched him cautiously. 

“It’s ok,” Erik cooed. “I’m not gonna hurt you.” 

The snake seemed somewhat pacified by the offering, and slithered closer. It investigated his finger, and bumped its nose against him. Gently, Erik stroked the top of its head. 

“How’d you get here?” the boy wondered. “You can’t be much good at carrying rocks.” 

Erik closed his eyes and tried to listen to the snake. It was a trick he’d learnt to keep secret from other people, but if he concentrated he could hear them even when they weren’t talking. Just snippets and whispers, darting thoughts and flowering emotions, but it often proved useful. Perhaps the snake wouldn’t mind if he used his trick on it. A slight hum, but nothing more. Disappointed, Erik sat back up. 

“Well, if you’re stuck here too I might as well give you a name,” he said. Erik racked his mind for suggestions. “There are monsters that look like snakes. Maybe I’ll call you Basilisk, or Cockatrice. Or Medusa, she had snakes on her head.”

The purple snake stared at him unblinking. Erik sighed. 

“No, a monster’s name doesn’t work for you,” he said. Then he had a lightbulb moment. “Hang on! I remember a story about a snake charmer. She could talk to snakes and make them do what she wanted. What was her name? Cura... Copa... Oh, it was Cubellios! How does that sound? Though I don’t know if you’re a girl or a boy.”

The snake flicked its tongue, poking its head out from the hole. 

Erik grinned. “Alright then, Cubellios it is. And I bet if I keep trying I’ll be able to hear your voice one day. It sure would be nice to have someone else to talk to.”

There was no more time for conversation at that moment however. Voices yelled from outside the door, ordering the prisoners to prepare for work. Erik gently pushed the snake back into its hole, nudging some straw in front of the entrance. 

“You’d better hide, Cubellios,” he warned the snake. “I’ll be back later, ok?”

Though that day was no less brutal than any other in the Tower of Heaven, Erik had the faintest glimmer of hope to help get him through it. And he prayed to whatever gods may be listening that they’d both be freed from this torment, and that he’d hear the voice of his one true friend. 

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed! Please leave a comment if you did, they make me very happy!


End file.
